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The stitched example, Kansas Highway 7, is part of the Glacial Hills Scenic Byway also designated as part of the official route of the Lewis and Clark Historic Trail.

The sunflower pattern is easily one of the most interesting state highway signs in the United States. Many state highway signs feature plain squares or circles, but the folks in Kansas showed a little creativity when they generated this design.

The stitched example, Highway 182, is a part of the Louisiana Bayou Byway, a scenic route between New Orleans and Lafayette. The website MyScenicDrives describes the Byway as “bayous, birds, and beignets.”

This US Highway cross stitch pattern and kit are now available in my Etsy shop!

The pattern is based on real US highway signs. The stitched example, Highway 89, is a roughly 1250-mile stretch from the Montana-Canada border to Flagstaff, Arizona. It is nicknamed “The National Park Highway” as it links seven national parks including Glacier National Park in Montana, Yellowstone National Park in Montana and Wyoming, Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks in Utah, and the Grand Canyon in Arizona. It also provides access to numerous other national park areas including national monuments.

[Bryce Canyon by Suzanham via Flickr]

Another fascinating location along Highway 89 is Thistle, Utah. According to Wikipedia, it is “a ghost town that was destroyed by a lake resulting from a landslide in 1983.”

[Thistle, Utah by Rick Smith via Flickr]

The US numbered highway system was approved in 1926. Before then, “auto trails designated by auto trail associations were the main means of marking roads through the United States.” With names like the “Bee Line Highway,” “Glacier to Gulf Motorway,” and the “Old Spanish Trail,” these trails’ names definitely sound more romantic than their numerical replacements.

Route 66 is probably the best known of all the US Highways, although it was officially removed from the highway system in 1985. It spanned roughly 2450 miles from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California. Before the numbered highway system, this path included parts of three trails: The Lone Star Route, the Ozark Trail, and the National Old Trails Road. It was the migration path for thousands of people during the Dust Bowl in the 1930’s and again during World War II. It inspired both a popular song, “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66” and a successful TV show in the 1960’s. Eventually, the growth of the Interstate Highway System rendered Route 66 obsolete, however many parts of the old roadway have been specially designated as “Historic Route 66” and set aside for preservation.

[Route 66 Hackberry (Arizona USA) by Perry Tak via Flickr]

I can easily customize this pattern for any of your favorite highways. Create a reminder of a favorite drive or road trip with this US highway cross stitch pattern and kit!

This Montana cross stitch pattern and kit are now available in my Etsy shop!

The pattern is based on a Montana Secondary Road sign. The standard Montana Highway sign (shown at right) is a bit plain, so I thought this Secondary Road sign with it’s cool arrowhead pattern would make a much more interesting cross stitch pattern.

I can easily customize this pattern for any of your favorite Montana roads! MyScenicDrives has good information about Montana.

[Montana Highway Signs by Jimmy Emerson, DVM, via Flickr]

[Road leading from Bozeman Montana, winding through the Bridger Mountains by Kim Tasjian via Flickr]

[Looking north towards Ennis, Montana along US 287 by Madison76 via Flickr]

[Glacier National Park by Lue Huang via Flickr]

Create a reminder of a favorite drive in Big Sky Country with this Montana cross stitch pattern and kit!

This project is a perfect way to commemorate a journey along the Way of St. James. The scallop shell has long been the symbol of the Camino, and it serves both practical and symbolic purposes.

The shell served as a makeshift bowl for water and food, and pilgrims would often take a Galician scallop shell on their return home as proof of their journey. The grooves in the scallop also symbolize the different paths the pilgrims follow on route to their one destination – Santiago de Compostela, legendary home of the apostle St. James’ remains.

The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela is in the province of Galicia in northwestern Spain.

[photo by Marcelo Jaramillo Cisneros via Flickr]

There are two main routes to the cathedral. There is a more inland route through Logroño, the Rioja region, Burgos, and León. Rioja is one of my favorite places – I wrote about it near the bottom of this post on our 2014 travels.

There is also a more coastal route through Bilbao and Santander, and then through Asturias and Galicia. I wrote about Asturias in another post on our 2014 travels – it’s simply gorgeous.

I was lucky enough to go inside the cathedral during a special mass. At this mass they used the massive 80kg (176 lb) censer (incense burner) called the “Botafumiero” that requires several people, the “tiraboleiros,” to operate. The censer is attached to a rope that then swings via a pulley across the cathedral transept. The tiraboleiros swing the censor nearly to the ceiling!

From the Wikipedia article, “One explanation of this custom, which originated more than 700 years ago—although incense has been used in Catholic ritual from the earliest times—is that it assisted in masking the stench emanating from hundreds of unwashed pilgrims.”

As with many travels, it’s not necessarily the destination that is important – it’s the journey you take to get there. I hope many of you will use this Camino de Santiago cross stitch project as a way to create a reminder of your journey.

The stitched example, Interstate 80, is a 2900 mile route that runs from San Francisco, California to Teaneck, New Jersey. Along the way, it also passes through Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.

I must say that I am most familiar with I-80 from where it meets I-76 on the western Nebraska border to Newton, Iowa. Many hours of my youth were spent on long road trips from Denver to Omaha to Newton and then back to Denver, visiting family during summer vacations.

I am also very familiar with the stretch of I-80 between Vacaville and Davis, California. In my previous career, I worked on a the construction of pharmaceutical factory in Vacaville. Vacaville was a nice town, but the really good restaurants were in the fun college town of Davis, about 20 miles away.

The entire Interstate Highway System is an impressive feat of engineering. Started in 1956, the network now has a total length of 47,856 miles. It goes through some truly spectacular scenery – a couple of my favorites are I-70 between Green River and it’s junction with I-15,

[Sun Ray by Arunas Sileika via Flickr]

and the tiny stretch of I-15 in Arizona between St. George, Utah, and Mesquite, Nevada through the Virgin River Canyon.

This is the latest in my fun series of road sign projects. In fact, this was created as a result of a custom order request from someone who had seen my other road sign patterns. It turned out so well that I thought I’d add it to my shop!

The pattern is based on a German Autobahn road sign. Yes, there are places where there are no speed limits, however the recommended top speed is 130 km/hr (81 mi/hr).

It’s perfect for your favorite speed demons and Sammy Hagar fans… from the way back machine – do you remember “I can’t drive… 55!”? [Caution: Cheesy 1980’s music video]

This fun no speed limit cross stitch pattern and kit are good for beginners and more experienced cross stitchers alike! With their crisp lines and bright colors, this and the other European road sign patterns are perfect for decorating kids’ rooms, media rooms, and offices. I also have a fun series of individual United States highway signs that is a continuing work-in-progress.

This Utah cross stitch pattern and kit are the latest in my series of state highway road signs that are now available in my Etsy shop!State Route 9 includes a drive through the stunning scenery of Zion National Park. I’ve been lucky enough to pass through this park a number of times – it is truly spectacular!

[(One of the views from Route 9) Zion National Park by Bachspics via Flickr]

[(Highway 9 through) Zion National Park by Hanneorla via Flickr]

Photos really can’t capture all the beauty of Zion National Park. I truly hope that you get to see this place for yourself!

Whether you’re an Utahn, a frequent visitor, or just a fan of the state, this Utah cross stitch pattern and kit would be a great way to create a reminder of a favorite drive or place in “The Beehive State.”

This Georgia cross stitch pattern and kit are the latest in my series of state highway road signs that are now available in my Etsy shop!State Road 16 is a roughly 180 mile stretch of road running east/west through Georgia, part of which is included in the Historic Piedmont Scenic Byway.

I can easily customize this pattern for any of your favorite Georgia state roads, and there are some beautiful drives in the state.

[Scenic Road in Blue Ridge, GA by Clay Garrett via Flickr]

[North Oconee River by Alan Cressler via Flickr]

Whether you’re a Georgian, a frequent visitor, or just a fan of the state, this Georgia cross stitch pattern and kit would be a great way to create a reminder of a favorite drive or place in “The Peach State”

This New Mexico cross stitch pattern and kit are the latest in my series of state highway road signs that are now available in my Etsy shop!

With Thanksgiving and the holidays coming up, my blogging has taken a bit of a back seat in the midst of all my prep work. However – I always keep on stitching new patterns!

State Road 522 is a roughly 40 mile stretch of road between scenic Taos and the Colorado border. My husband and I drove on this road in the summer of 2013 after visiting Santa Fe. Was it the most scenic road in New Mexico? Honestly, no. But Taos is charming and the road north of it was a fun drive into Colorado.

[Rio Grande Gorge in Taos by Casey Moore via Flickr]

I can easily customize this pattern for any of your favorite New Mexico state roads, and there are some really beautiful drives in the state.

[New Mexico Sunrise by AdventureMike via Flickr]

Whether you’re a New Mexican, a frequent visitor, or just a fan of the state, this New Mexico cross stitch pattern and kit would be a great way to create a reminder of a favorite drive or place in “The Land of Enchantment.”